The Meanderings of Justin Dawes
by Anne Bonney
Summary: Justin Dawes is a fairly average guy just getting by in the world, until a freak accident with a Nintendo DS throws him and his friends into the world of pokemon. He has to find his way - on four furry Growlithe paws, that is...
1. Chapter 1

**The meanderings of Justin Dawes**

**Chapter 1**

"No wait, I can't see you on wi-fi yet".

"Maybe you ought to get a monocle; apparently your glasses are failing, and you've got to get yourself some dignity somehow".

"You what?!"

Sighing, I snatched Percy's DS deftly out of his hand and grumbled at the error code on the screen. It struck me at that moment that it was a rather sorry time in my life, where I had waited all day to receive some 'Hadou' mew, even memorising its name in hiragana whilst at school in my I.T. lesson.

"This is dull, dull dull dull dull dull", moaned Jazz, leaning back against the beanbag in the corner of Percy's room. I silently questioned why the guy (James, was his actual name) had followed me to my friend's house in the first place. From the moment I'd seen his blonde, gelled hair and converse trainers, I'd known we had nothing in common. Percy's younger brother Alfred stared up at the darkly lit ceiling, listening to the rain outside.

I suppose I should introduce myself. Where to start? Let me construct for you a mental picture of myself, after all, using one's imagination seems to be somewhat out of fashion these days. A fairly tall, lanky frame, sandy brown mop of hair and the remains of an acne condition you'd expect to find in a sixteen year old's position, adequately sums up my physique.

As for my personal life, I can assure you it was rather "sparse on the ground", as my mother would say. I neglected any active pursuit in my school studies, and never looked to find much stimulation elsewhere in life.

My closest friends lived next door: there was Percy, a bespectacled¹ guy with a slightly crooked nose and dark, shadowed hair, and his younger brother Alfred. We had very little in common, but one feature in our lives that brought us together was the love of a certain game – The Nintendo Pokemon series.

Every afternoon after school – which I avoid speaking of, as my school and I share a mutual repulsion of each other – I'd cycle down the sloped suburban road, round a couple of uninspiring corners, and the traffic lights which I'd never paid attention to in seven dreary years since moving into the area. The terraced house where the neighbours lived was unkempt (as was ours), and its gothic revival decoration combined with the lack of adequate natural lighting gave the interior a dark, dampened aura. Even Percy himself did little to lighten the atmosphere, quiet and cynical, but with occasional flashes of brilliance in his humour. Perhaps that was the heart of our friendship, for we could find laughter in the worst of events.

"Seriously, it's bloody childish, playing some little monster game", Jazz continued, pinching the beanbag. Alfred rolled his eyes and said nothing. Percy sniggered as he took back the DS.

"I could be doing so much more interesting stuff than sitting around here," he continued.

"How about testing the front door?" Percy asked. "If it's working correctly, it should lock automatically behind you". I stifled my laugh in my jumper sleeve.

"Why would I want it to do that?" enquired Jazz, a puzzled expression passing over his face. Not the sharpest knife in the drawer, was our Jazz. (Wait. Our Jazz? I'd only known the guy two weeks, and he certainly wasn't what I'd call a friend. Just some boy who aggravated me by tailing me. I genuinely looked forward to the day when I explained that he was wearing his cap the wrong way round on his head. That Jazz², sums it up more bluntly).

My eye was caught by a wire that led from a small bedside lamp to the mains socket – the wires were exposed and vibrating, just a little.

"Are you sure that's safe?" I asked, nodding in the direction of the socket.

"Yeah, I'm sure it is…" came Percy's absent-minded reply; he didn't even spare a glance at where I'd indicated. "Hey, the wi'fi's finally come up!"

"Tea's on the table!" Came a ghastly shriek from downstairs. Perhaps I wouldn't have described Percy's mother's voice as a ghastly shriek, had the timing not been so abysmal. A collective sigh rose from all except Jazz, who cheered "Food! Freedom!", and we all moved to leave the room. Percy flung his DS haphazardly to the other side of the room, though none of us noticed it land on the dodgy wire. Dinner waited downstairs.

On our return, there was an immediate sense among us that not all was well. We were all aware that the rain outside was slowly converting into a thunderstorm, rumbling ominously among the darkening cloak of clouds. With the exception of slow Jazz, who was raving about the Shepherd's Pie that we'd enjoyed, oblivious to the odd light emitting from the crack of the door to Percy's room. Alfred tentatively prodded the door open wide. Percy's DS was balanced precariously upon the faulty wire, and minute sparks crackled and leapt about its surface. We all stayed well back. Except Jazz, who danced forward.

"Woah, look at this thing!" He exclaimed, bending down towards the device.

"Jazz, get back!" Percy yelled, no humour present in his now serious tones. We all jumped forward towards the fool, whose hand was now stretched towards the 'Start' button.

"What happens if- ARGH!!" Jazz was unable to complete his subjunctive sentence, for at the moment he made contact with the DS, lightning illuminated the room, and we all plunged into a keyhole-like shard of light, falling. Fast.

*****************************************

I sensed movement in the darkness. There was something shimmering, and rainbow-like. It shimmered before my darkened vision, and bewitched, I raised a heavy hand to catch it. I trapped it there, and my eyesight came flooding back to me.

"Gahhhh!!" is the closest description³ I can attach to my vocal realisation that the multicoloured entity was not enchanting at all, but some horrendous beady-eyed creature. Its skin was of a lime complexion; it had blank, glassy eyes, undulating feelers and far too many legs. And it was far too big for an insect. But the worst thing about the creature was that I knew its name, though I dared not say it, in my certainty that this was one great hallucination.

I sprang back from the monstrous bug, feeling light-headed and confused, but what confounded me further was that I couldn't feel my arms at all. In vain I attempted to wave my hands in front of my face, but to no avail. Furthermore, my feet felt more stably planted in the grass than I was used to. Glancing down at my feet brought me close to fainting again; they seemed to have been replaced by furry, chestnut-orange paws, decorated with plumes of white fur. I suddenly felt that this whole situation was desperately real.

The green bug – Caterpie – was inching towards me, and I stood rooted to the spot on what apparently were now my four legs. It reached me, and stared me blankly in the face.

"What're youuu looking at?" it uttered, in a sinister, un-bug-like accent. Screaming, I bounded away through what were the outskirts of a tall, dense forest. I halted at a sparkling blue pond; upon the other side were some farmhouses. This water's clear surface was what I had been looking for. Creeping up to the side of the body of water, I gazed down anxiously at my reflection. Growlithe stared back at me, sharing my disorientated expression. Exhausted, I lay down, trying to make sense of what had happened.

Jazz had gone to touch that blasted Nintendo DS, there had been a flash of light – it had felt as if I had been thrown into the game! But I was convinced in my usual over-confidence that such an event couldn't have really happened; this was all a dream and I'd soon awake.

Hours later however, I was still lying in my growlithe form by the pond. I'd not woken up yet, and I was beginning to realise that this 'mutt' form might just be a permanent arrangement.

A small girl with honey-coloured hair in pigtails and ribbons appeared from behind one of the farmhouses. She was only around eight, and she wore a brown shoulder bag. She was skipping towards the pond where I was sat. I knew now that I needed help, and as she was the first human being in sight, I stupidly assumed that I should choose her as some sort of saviour. I bounded towards her, and she spotted me fairly quickly.

"Wowee, a pokeyman!" she squealed, "It's so cute!" From her satchel she produced a little poke ball, and threw it in my general direction. Luckily she was a pathetic shot, and I leapt out of the way and hurried towards her.

"You've got to help me!" I exclaimed, running up to her, "I'm not a pokemon, I'm a boy, I'm stuck in this body, and I need to get out of here!!!"

The little girl, Teresa, had always been told that pokemon were more dangerous than they seemed. Nevertheless, she'd successfully stolen some of her father's poke balls and headed towards the forest. But when she came across the growlithe, it dodged her poke ball and hurtled towards her, yapping and barking with a wild expression in her eyes. Unsurprisingly she turned around and ran bawling back to the farmhouse.

"Okay, that didn't go as planned", I thought to myself, turning and walking back towards the forest as the sun shone overhead. At least I knew now that whilst I could converse with other pokemon, people were not so responsive or understanding. Sighing, I concealed myself under a bush and lay down in the shade. I was more than a little bewildered and lost.

* * *

¹He really _should_ have gone to Specsavers. Seriously though, the glasses that Percy wears – I thought they'd stopped making them by the twentieth century.

²He thought he was all that – Jazz (I'll save any weak puns for the footnotes, so that such puns don't lower your opinion of my intelligence).

³The words "Keeyaaaah!" and "Bgraaah!" could also be deemed sufficient explanations of my nonsensical exclamation of surprise here.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I was awoken in the middle of the night. Grumbling, I told my mother how I loathed being woken at such an inconvenient time and asked what was going on.

"Tch, why are fire-types always so grouchy? Fiery temper, I suppose".

"What?" I lift my furry head from a pair of paws, and gazed up groggily, trying to pinpoint the direction of the voice.

"We don't normally see growlithes round these parts," continued the voice, "This is the territory of dark creatures such as myself, wicked and terrifying, merciless and treacherous!" The pokemon fluttered down to a branch before me and puffed out his feathered chest. He was a murkrow, and an odd one at that.

"Do I know you? –And you don't look particularly terrifying, anyway".

"How dare you, why would you say that?"-

"Well, you're pink, for one thing…"

"I'll have you know that this is a night shade of purple," the Murkrow retorted grumpily, preening a couple of feathers. "And I was born with it".

"I thought murkrows were meant to travel in flocks", I observed, "Where are your colleagues?"

The murkrow grumbled something about 'colour discrimination' and hopped down to the floor, apparently confident now that I wouldn't attack.

"So, where's _your_ flock then?" he asked me.

"I – I don't know", I replied, "There were four of us, I don't know where the other three went".  
"Well that was bird-brained of you," he said, "Are you often that disorganised?"

"Not at home," I stated calmly. He cocked his head and looked enquiringly at me.

"So where is home, if this isn't it?"

It was almost a subconscious decision, but I decided to explain to him my story. Of how I'd been a normal guy, almost at the end my education, in a world without pokemon, and then been thrown here. How I was utterly dazed and lost, how I wasn't sure by which route I could return. The murkrow let a few minutes pass in silence after I finished my tale.

"What's your name then? In this world of yours?"

"Justin, Justin Dawes", I replied.

"Then I will be your tutor," the murkrow replied proudly, "I'll show you how to have street smarts round here. 'Cause I'm Horatio, and these are Horatio parts! Come on, let's go!"

"Just wait a moment," I said, "It's the middle of the night, can't this hold on?" Horatio laughed.

"Unless you want to get caught by some trainer and play gladiators for the rest of your life, I'd advise that you do what I do, and slip around in the dark".

Horatio and I journeyed further into the forest; I moved amongst the undergrowth whilst he leapt from branch to branch a few metres up. He spoke of his home, where the best food could be found, and pokemon trainers he'd had close encounters with; as a shiny pokemon he'd even been hunted by whole groups of people. He also asked far too many questions about where I'd originated from as well.

"So why do you want to get home so bad?"

"Because – well, I just guess I belong there, don't I?" I replied, feeling somewhat disappointed with myself for not having something deeper to miss.

"S'pose you've got family, then", he muttered.

"Well, yeah", I replied. "My parents are out a lot of the time, I don't see much of them. I spend more time at Percy's house. Perhaps I –"

"Hold on, Percy?" The bird asked, surprised.

"Yeah, my mate, he was thrown into this world as well. Lord knows where's he's got to". Horatio stopped fluttering and perched upon a Maple Tree branch. He looked at first thoughtful, and then a corvine smile spread over his shadowy face.

"I think I've seen your friend already today, before I met you. His name was Percy, and the situation would fit…" He started cackling.

"What's so amusing?" I asked, "Where is he?"

"Oh, you'll see," Horatio continued, "Let me take you to where I last saw him".

The two of us turned sharply left, and crossed a few small gurgling streams. The wind was pushing the trees ever so slightly eastwards, so that their shapes bet like omens over the natural path. A couple of wurmples scuttled past. Horatio eyed them hungrily, but did not divert his path.

It didn't take particularly long to find Percy. He was stood atop a small log bridge crossing a stream, looking thoroughly downcast and annoyed. The reason for his apparent distress?

"….A seed! Of all the transformations possible, I became a _seed_?!"

"It could be worse, Perce, you could have been a bibarel, or a buneary, or"-

"At least I would have had friggin' arms!" The budew cried, exasperated, "I can't do anything!"

It didn't help the situation that Horatio was in fits of laughter.

"What the hell are you laughing at? Who are you?!" Percy shouted.

"I eat budews as a side-dish," Horatio said, between smirks, "Looking fine there, flower boy". Percy jumped up to reach the murkrow in his anger, but was clearly unsuccessful. The dark side of me itched to laugh as well, but I owed more to my friend than that.

"Listen, Horatio, stop laughing," I ordered, "and Perce, would you just stop feeling sorry for yourself? We're in this situation now, and we've either got to live with it or escape from it". Percy calmed down and looked at me steadily.

"I suppose my eyesight's better than it was before…" he reasoned, "But I don't want any more hassle off that pink murkrow".

"I'm not _pink!" _Horatio cried, "I am a shade of deep, mysterious lavender". Percy and I exchanged looks of amusement. Suddenly, I shivered instinctively.

"This is a cold night", I mumbled, "If only there was somewhere warm we could stay".

"Can't you breathe fire or something?" Percy asked seriously.

"I've not tried it yet," I replied. I turned and shuffled to a clearing, where I deemed it safe to test my pyrotechnic skills. Drawing in a deep breath, I arched my neck forward and breathed out, visualising fire. There was not even a hint of flames, which was an adequate cue for Horatio to begin chuckling again. I sighed and curled up like a cat, to protect myself from the cold.

"Where do you think my brother got to?" Percy asked sadly, gazing up at through the canopy high above.

"I'm sure he can look after himself," I replied, "He always was pretty independent. I'd be more concerned for Jazz, he's plainly idiotic and incapable of any of his own thoughts¹". Percy smiled, and changed the subject, acknowledging that he had no inkling as to how to return back to the real world.

"Why don't you stay a while and enjoy the ride then?" Horatio asked, "I'd be happy to take you on the full tour, free of charge!"

"What's in it for you?" Percy asked suspiciously, glaring in a way that only budews can at the murkrow.

"Some company," Horatio replied, "It's far too dull around here…"

"Where should we go then?" I asked, a little more enthusiastically.

"So many places, so much time!" Horatio exclaimed joyfully, "There's the beaches, the trainer routes, the mountains, and the big cities! ² There's plenty to explore, that even I've not seen before".

"So it's agreed, we'll make the most of a disadvantageous situation?" I questioned. Horatio jumped up and down delightedly, and Percy sighed and gave a nod, smiling slightly.

Dawn was beginning to break, and we were still travelling, Horatio in the lead. The sun was spreading Percy had fallen back into his grumbling ways.

"You know, nearly seventeen years, and I never asked a girl out," he said dejectedly. "All that time, and now it's totally out of the question".

"Oh, I don't know," Horatio replied, turning back to him briefly, "For a budew you're quite a looker! I'm sure the Glooms will be lining up to date somebody with your personality".

"One more word from you Pinkie, and you'll be an ex-crow!" Percy shouted, now losing his temper.

"What're you gonna do?" Horatio smirked. "Stroke me menacingly with a petal?" Percy groaned exasperatedly, and kicked a tree in annoyance. Only, the tree was no tree at all.

_Sudowoodo had been kept awake by screeching Noctowls all night. In the dying hours of the night however, the berated pokemon finally shut his eyes and fell into deep slumber. Doubtlessly, to be awoken again by a nasty little kick was offensive enough, but to open his wooden eyes and witness that the aggressor was a measly budew, was too much to bear. _

"Alright, alright, keep your leaves on!" Horatio cawed at the Sudowoodo.

"How dare that monstrous little plant do such an insulting thing! How dare she!"

"He", I corrected the tree cautiously.

"She woke me from my sleep! I'll teach her a lesson!" Sudowoodo shouted, pointing an accusatory finger at Percy, who was still frozen in shock. The tree pokemon leapt forward, as if to tackle Percy, who was most certainly a lot lighter and more fragile than his foe. Horatio intervened quickly, flying in front of Sudowoodo and releasing a murky brown haze from his beak. It was the first time either Percy or I had seen a pokemon move actually being used, and needless to say we were somewhat impressed. Horatio turned to us.

"-Look folks, I thought you'd be smart enough to work it out for yourselves, but this is the cue for you to RUN!"

I began to dash, but realised that Percy was unable to keep up a good pace on two feet.

"Err, sorry mate" I said, turning back to my struggling friend.

"What for?" Somehow even in Budew state, Percy was very skilled at raising an eyebrow.

"This", I replied, picking the budew up in jaws like a chew toy and continuing the running escape. I ignored his grumbling complaints as my paws stumbled over loose branches and scattered leaves, leaving the path and galloping into the thickets and darkness of larger and older trees. Soon a familiar flapping noise could be heard ahead, and Horatio was with us again.

"Alright, ye can stop now…..now, stop!" I finally crashed to a halt and placed Percy back down onto the ground.

"Yeeuch!" Percy moaned, rubbing off a small amount of saliva (-hey, I'd been running pretty fast-) and sighing.

"Are you alright?" I asked Horatio.

"Sure, sure…just have big fights with big pokemon and let poor ol' Horatio sort it out", the crow said most sarcastically.

"I'm sorry, it was just that back there –"

"No, no, no need to apologise…just call me next time you go and kick a Groudon, I'll be right there with my crow-sized coffin ordered", Horatio said mournfully.

"Will it be painted pink?" Percy asked, breaking into a grin.

"Wha???" Horatio cried.

"You are Pinkie after all!" Percy continued, "Pinkie and the Brain! Who's the Brain? Not you, I guess".

"Oi! I don't know what you're on about, but it don't sound good!"

"Good to have you back to yourself Percy," I said, clapping him on the back with a paw. He fell over; I'd forgotten he was quite fragile as a budew. Now it was Horatio's turn to chuckle.

"…so, where do we go now?" Percy asked, getting back to his feet and gazing up at the thick canopy, where sunlight was starting to break through.

"Now we sleep", Horatio replied. "And tomorrow evening, I'll take you to the nearest town. S'called Solaceon town".

"D'you hear that?" Percy said. "We're going to Solaceon Town! …this is really happening…it's really happening…" a strange smile crossed my friend's face.

"Well, DUH", Horatio interjected.

¹Well, perhaps he was capable of coming up with one or two thoughts over the course of the day. Though if they overlapped he'd most likely suffer a malfunction.

²If I was to add a musical number to this chapter, it'd go right here.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

A feast of chesto berries and assorted nuts for evening breakfast seemed to me to be a rather dire omen for the rest of the day.

"Now don't you complain boys," the eccentric Murkrow announced, "it took me a whole hour to collect enough for the three of us!" Strange as I found Horatio, there was no use in being ungrateful for his charity, so I accepted what I'd been given. Percy directed a few deathly stares at the chesto berries, but also thankfully kept his mouth shut.

After the debacle yesterday with the enraged Sudowoodo, it was decided that we'd stay away from the path. Horatio guided us through thickets and brambles, over tree roots and small streams. After a few hours meandering through the undergrowth, however, the surroundings were beginning to look curiously familiar. I wasn't the only one to notice.

"Haven't we gone past this gnarled tree before?" asked Percy grumpily.

"Course not!" came Horatio's positive reply. "See! – that's a new sight" He pointed to a strange small conical tree. Percy hopped nearer to it to take a look. _It moved. _

"What the" – Percy looked apprehensive. The little tree's eyes opened and it stood on a few rickety legs.

"Hey, it's a Bonsly!" I said. The Bonsly glanced around, then fixed its eyes on Budew, and froze, before -  
"Eek!! Don't 'urt me, don't 'urt me!!" It shrieked, fleeing in panic. Percy blinked twice, utterly bewildered. Horatio cackled.

"It seems your reputation goes before you, flower-boy! You're the one who kicks helpless pokemon in fits of rage". He winked at the budew mischievously.

"But – how would it know about that?"

"Oh, every pokemon in this forest is a self-confessed gossip, you know". Percy paused, and I took the opportunity to change the subject to something more pressing.

"Horatio, are we lost?"

"Not really…" the Murkrow replied, tilting his head this way and that, "…but the forest is difficult to navigate, and a map would be preferable in the circumstances in order to- "

"Horatio, are we lost???" Percy repeated the question, annoyed.

"No, but – "

"Spare the excuses! Are we LOST?"

"Umm…" Horatio looked at a notch in the branch he was perched on, apparently fascinated by it. "…Maybe…"

"Well, that's just great," was Percy's sarcastic reply. Horatio looked apologetic.

"'Ere, I'll…find some help, and you stay here", Horatio said, before spreading his wings and flying upwards and out through a gap in the murky canopy.

Horatio returned a short time later, with a companion, who crept along at a lamentable pace. It stopped when it reached Percy and I, and glared at me with baleful black eyes.

"Oh, it's youuu", the Caterpie groaned depressingly. He was a monster of a Caterpie. I'd have to guess he was one of the oldest Caterpies in existence, truly some sort of grandfather bug.

"This is Montgomery," Horatio said, "he's a wise Caterpie who I've known for a while, and he knows this forest like the back of his antennae."

"Umm, good evening," I said politely.

"Can I call you Monty? Only, it's easier" Percy directed to the Caterpie.

"…. no" Came the monotone reply.

"So will ya show us the way to Solaceon Town please, Montgomery?" Horatio asked.

"…I suppose I must", he sighed, "Follow me…"

The four of us turned left and continued our travels. Montgomery moved at an irritatingly slow pace, and I began to make a mental comparison of Jazz and this Caterpie, considering which was more annoying. Montgomery grumbled about the state of the trees, the Sentrets that wouldn't stop their chattering, the constant rain showers, the effects of mud on his feet, the degradations of old age…

"Now really, don't you ever stop complaining?!" Percy interrupted suddenly. This amused me no end, as Percy was usually the complainer to out-complain all complainers. Montgomery stopped in his tracks, and slowly turned to face Percy.

"I've been a Caterpie for twenty years…twenty years! I've never evolved…. that's a perfectly good reason to hate the world". He turned back and continued inching along.

"Y'know, Montgomery, I'm sure if you get a trainer to help you out, you'd evolve pretty fast," Horatio suggested. The Caterpie stopped again, and slowly glanced back, again.

"I don't intend to be a servant to some puny human," he remarked loudly, holding his head high, "I shall not stoop to such levels!"

"Wait, wait," I finally said, "I thought pokemon liked being with trainers and all that sort of thing…"

"Some do," said Horatio. "I mean, there's free food, and most battle scratches are quickly healed, but…. well, I'm a coward when it comes to battles, and Montgomery here has a superiority complex".

"You make it sound like my personality is a problem," Montgomery retorted, looking away in disgust. "I can't help being rather more well-adorned with intelligence and sense than others". He crawled on. Percy sniggered into his leaves.

Finally, once midnight had past, the four of us made it to a gravely path, different from the path we'd been on before.  
"We'll be there before daybreak," Montgomery said indifferently.

"Fabulous!" Horatio cawed.

"Will you be going the rest of the way with us, Monty?" Percy asked slyly.

"Don't – call – me – that – name" Montgomery growled. "And oh yes, I dread allowing three daft creatures as yourselves to be on your own, I fear you may burn the wood down".

"Well, la dee da," Percy replied in an irritated voice.

A few hours later, as the darkness began to waver slightly, Horatio, who'd been scouting ahead, returned to us in haste.

"Quick, trainers, trainers, into the bushes!" we all scrambled into some ferns, where we were concealed but could still view the path. Panting, I awaited the first human that I would see since my debacle with that girl… but the first character that caught my eye was not a person at all, but a little bumbling Kricketot, stumbling joyfully like a penguin to the middle of the path.

"Oh, flippin' heck, it's Tim", Horatio whispered, sounding more than a little despairing about this piece of information.  
"What about Tim?" I asked.

"Well Justin, like I said, some pokemon like trainers…Tim's one of those. However, the trainers don't like him. Nobody will catch him!"

"A disgrace," Montgomery the Caterpie muttered, "Total disgrace".

The trainers, two teenage girls, finally came into view. They held onto each other's wrist, whispering to each other, apparently spooked by the forest in the middle of the night. Tim the Kricketot perked up upon seeing them. He skipped towards them, squeaking "Trainer! Trainer! Trainer!" with his eyes a delightful sparkle and two stubby arms outstretched.

"Ack! A bug!" Screamed one of the girls shrilly. She stumbled backwards, dragging her friend with her. Tim stopped for a moment, and gazed lovingly at the girl who'd just screamed, apparently convinced that her shriek was a show of affection….

"TRAINER TRAINER!" he squeaked, doubling his speed and charging towards her.

"Arrrghh!!!" both girls sprinted off into the darkness in panic and out of sight. Poor Tim looked dejected, and he mournfully shuffled back off into his hiding place by the path. At least he'd be ready to accost the next unsuspecting trainer.

"Pathetic." That was all Montgomery had to say on the matter.

"C'mon folks, let's carry on, it's safe now," Horatio said, fluttering out from the ferns and nodding towards our destination.

Dawn was beginning to shimmer through the leaves of the trees, which were becoming more spaced out and less threatening-looking. Finally, collections of houses came into view, down in a shallow valley, where the forest abruptly ended.

"I have done my chore," Montgomery announced, sounding most bored. "Now I shall retire to the forest once more".

"Good luck with the whole 'butterfree' thing," Horatio said. The crow then came to Percy and I and whispered some fun parting trick for our guide.

"BYE MONTY!" we all shouted, before dashing down into the valley, laughing as we ran/flew. Montgomery remained where he was, a look of utter indignity flashing across his beady eyes.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"The good thing about towns," Horatio explained, "is that if you wander around them people assume you already belong to some trainer. They shouldn't fiddle around with poke balls trying to catch ya, if you're lucky!"

I like to try and maintain the manner of an indifferent teenager, who wouldn't be impressed by a tornado, but I can't deny that a part of me was childishly excited about visiting my first poke-center, my first poke-mart, my first gym… I reassured myself that anyone in my situation would take at least some interest in all of this. Being back in a distinctly human community was also a welcome change from the grim dark forest.

People all around were beginning to awaken, open their windows, put out laundry, come out of doors. There were children shouting and running down the pavements. But there were differences too. People were out walking with Snubbulls and Pichus, Rattattas and Poochyenas. The shops often had pokemon symbols on them, and the odd graffiti on the wall remarked upon topics such as "Team Rocket Rulez" and "Manectric Master Woz Ere" 1. Admittedly a Budew, Growlithe and a pink Murkrow trotting in a line down the pavement did merit a few odd looks from passers-by, but no questions were asked. I was a little disgruntled that Horatio stole a loaf of bread for us from a market stall, but human food was so much more appetising than wild berries and nuts. I resolved that if I ever returned to human form, I'd repay the stall-owner somehow, who didn't notice anything.

Horatio gave us the full guided tour,2 showing us the location of the pokemon centre, the small pokemon mart, and the local day-care, which made Solaceon Town a particularly popular area for trainers. Horatio then took us to the Trainer's School, which was a beautiful building built from red brick and stone cornices, with grand stone pillars inviting entry to all the young academics. There was also a large outbuilding, where pokemon could be housed if it was preferable to the confinement of a poke ball.  
"Alright fellas," Horatio called, "you know this place pretty well now, so I'll leave you to it for a bit – I've got a couple o' places to check out!"

"Where are you going?" Perce inquired.

"Hey, a Murkrow can go where a Murkrow can go! Stop being nosy!" With that, Horatio sailed back into the air and seemed to effortlessly be carried away by the prevailing breeze.

"Hey Justin, let's go and see what pokes are hiding out over there," Percy said, pointing with his bud to the outbuildings. Together we crossed the field, avoiding the group of boys playing football nearby, and reached the buildings. Despite the grandeur of the building, its age had resulted in wear and tear which left plenty of nooks and crannies through which a Growlithe and a Budew could stare inside. Creeping around, we first looked in at the stables, were several Ponytas and one Rapidash were tethered, all impatiently stomping their feet and arguing about who'd get the best hay at the next feed. In the next gap in the stone wall, flocks of Zubat were hung upside-down on wooden beams, sleeping soundly.

"C'mon Perce!" I called excitedly, dashing on four paws around the back of the building – and stopping suddenly.

"Alright Feeble!"

"Feeble, Feeble, Feeble!"

"Don't hold back, empty your pockets! We know you've got some change!"

"Yeah, just like always – now hand it over or you'll be binned!"

"No!!" The tousle-haired boy being taunted was backing away from three older youths, two sneering guys and a girl, who was laughing cruelly.

"Listen to that boys, he's thinking of standing up for himself!" she said amusedly.

"What shall we do with him, Shennie?" one of the bullies asked her.

"Oh, the usual, just need to use a little persuasion," she hissed. "Go, Rex!" From a poke ball she released a snapping Poochyena with wiry grey fur and a mean stare.

"Hey Shennie, he's still got no collar," the other guy said, pointing at the Poochyena's bare neck.

"I know," she shrugged, "It'll turn up I guess. Now, little Pete, let's see some coins!" she held out her hand to the terrified boy, who tensed up and then with some renewed courage smacked her hand away.

"How dare you!" she shouted angrily, "Rex, at him!"

Something about this scene really took a hold of me. I felt some affinity with the boy-victim, whose situation was not completely unfamiliar to my childhood days. It was time for me to intervene.

"Hey Justin, where are you going?!" Percy called. I ignored him.

"Get out of it!" I shouted, dashing between Pete and Rex the Poochyena.

"Where'd that thing come from?!" cried Shennie, disgruntled.

"Hey, loser, beat it!" Rex growled at me. The creature's yellow teeth intimidated me, but I stood my ground.

"Alright Rex, tackle that thing down!" Rex rushed at me in a flash of grey, and before I could even think about avoiding the attack I was knocked to the ground. I struggled back up off the ground and barked, but Rex was coming at me again.

"BITE!" Shennie shouted. I shrieked aloud when Rex closed his jaws on my right front paw, and jumped away with my three unharmed feet. I'd figured out by now that while defending could be fun in chess games and video games, in this situation it wasn't going to do me any good at all.

"Okay Rex, finish it off!" she called, "take down!"

But this time I already knew what I would do. Just before the point of impact, I rolled to one side3, and the Poochyena crashed into the ground. I couldn't make any use of fire, but I was quite certain that I knew how to use my jaws. I bit down hard on Rex's tail, and after a whimper his courage suddenly failed. He scrambled back to Shennie, and I advanced on her growling, just to make sure she'd figured the score on this one.

"Alright, alright!" she moaned, holding out her hands in surrender. On one hand was a small tattoo of an 'R' – no doubt a Team Rocket symbol. I barked once more, and thankfully the three grumblingly turned on their heels and left the area.

"You alright, kid?" I asked, temporarily forgetting that he couldn't understand a word I said. Pete wiped his nose unceremoniously on his sleeve and wiped a small tear from his eye.

"Thanks, Growlithe," he said, smiling and sniffing. A girl his age with freckles and hair in a brown plait came skipping around the corner.

"Where have you been, Pete?" she chirped, "I've been looking all over for you!"

"Coming, Sally!" he said, grinning finally. He turned back to me, and thanked me again, patting me kindly on the head.4 Then off he went with his friend.

"Alright Superman, what helpless victim shall you go and risk your life for now?" Percy's sarcastic voice sounded from behind me.

"Oh, thanks for the sympathy mate" I grumbled in reply.

"You're welcome!" Percy shouted with a melodramatically wide Budew-grin. That grin then transformed into a genuine look of concern."Hey, have you actually hurt your leg?" I looked down at it, and sure enough, there was a nasty bite mark on my leg and some bleeding. Putting weight on the paw was painful.

"Hmm, I need to go to that poke center", I acknowledged.

"Alright then Superman, let's go"

"Quit calling me that!" I replied. He chuckled, and I glared, but in truth I was glad to have his company. I limped off with him to the pokemon center in the middle of town.

Okay, so we have a National Health Service in our area back home, and it's all nicely outfitted. But the exterior designs of this poke-center – let's just say, for a rural town such as Solaceon Town, this center was _swanky. _There was a neat rooftop decked with chestnut tiles, an entrance flanked by white columns with chanseys engraved upon them, and electrical doors too. All rather impressive for a Growlithe with a bitten leg, who'd spent the last few nights trudging over exposed tree-roots.

The place was busy enough; from what I heard in snatches of conversation as I walked inside, the wild Ponyta on the northbound route were in a particularly violent mood, stomping and burning anything that breathed5. The burn heals were certainly flying a-plenty, and there was a steady stream of charcoal-coloured bidoofs coming in. A rather familiar looking-nurse with long dark pink hair ushered me to the only quiet part of the center: the waiting room.

Percy and I hopped onto two empty seats.

"Well isn't this just lovely," Percy remarked, "I wonder how long we'll have to wait".

I gazed around. There were two Glameows, playing tag quietly with each other, and one seemed to be somewhat dizzy from confusion. A young trainer was sitting in the far corner with a bandaged Aipom hanging from his arm. And directly opposite was a solitary Riolu – _reading the paper. _I found this piece of information odd in itself, but there were other misgivings I had about this blue fellow. He definitely had no trainer supervising him, nor did he appear to have any obvious injury. Casually, this Riolu drew the newspaper together to turn another page. And I saw that he had a collar. And on that collar, was a name.

"Rex?" I asked quietly. There was no response. I repeated my question rather louder, and though one of the Glameows stopped and stared, the Riolu still didn't look up from his paper. I got off the bench and hobbled up to the pokemon opposite.  
"Funny that", I said, coming right up to Riolu, "Your collar says Rex, and you don't answer to the name. Why is that?" Riolu glanced at me with a bored expression, and returned to his paper without even bothering to reply.

"It would surprise you to know that a Poochyena called Rex lost a collar recently?" I asked, referring to Shennie's collarless pokemon. Riolu sighed, and held my gaze properly this time.

"I don't want a trainer, so I wear this collar that I – found – and therefore I don't end up with trainer. Figure?"

"Wait!" Percy the Budew said suddenly, "Say something again!" Riolu looked rather bemused now.

"Did you have anything particular for me to say, or was that rhetorical?"

"I recognise that sarcastic voice and that 'Figure' phrase!" Percy said triumphantly. And then Perce continued to leap upon Riolu, bowling him out of his seat, while I could only watch on, nonplussed.

"Geroff me!"

"Not a chance, little bro", Percy replied in a sinister yet joking voice.

"Perce?" Alfred the Riolu asked in surprise – "But you're – "

"Yeah, yeah, no need to point out that I have some shrubbery sticking out from my head. So, you and Justin get nice pokemon forms then?" If Percy had any arms, he would have folded them in disgust by now.

"Justin?" Alfred asked. "Have you found Jus-" he stopped and stared over at me – "Ah, right. Hi Justin!" He waved a paw. "Did you guys fall into this world together then? And what happened to your leg Justin?"

"I got bitten by some girl's Poochyena", I replied, "It was called Rex….it had lost a collar" I winked at Alfred.

"Ah, now things make sense", the Riolu replied.

"We didn't start off together though," Perce said, "some cocky Murkrow reintroduced us…"  
I laughed guiltily, wondering whether Horatio would actually find us again.

"Growlithe?" I turned, and Nurse Joy was at the door. "Would you like to come through?"

"Woof," I said, for lack of a better reply, and I limped after her as she led me to the clinic. Percy and Alfred followed me in.

"Hmmm, quite some bite you've got to this paw," Nurse Joy chirped, looking at my leg. A Chansey stood behind her, preparing some bandages with a friendly face. I wagged my tail. Heck, she was pretty, so I don't see much wrong in acting like a Growlithe in a good mood.

"Hmm, if only I could know what pokemon bit you," she mused aloud, "it'd be much easier to sort this wound…though I don't see a trainer…"

"I can sort this out, leave it to me", Alfred said proudly. He looked at Nurse Joy. And then I heard his voice utter, "A Poochyena, ma'am" – but his lips didn't move a fraction.

"Of course," Percy acknowledged, "Riolus can communicate to humans with telepathy…hey Justin, that could be helpful for us".

"A Poochyena? Thank you, Riolu!" The Nurse said, patting Alfred on the head, who merely looked a bit patronized.6 The bandages flew about, some colourful ointments were applied to my leg, and I was given a general check-up (eyes, teeth, etc.), then released from the clinic.

"That went pretty well, I thought" was my first comment as we left the sparkling poke-center. Perce nodded. We were just walking down the street explaining our story so far to Alfred (he'd not spoken of his journey to us), when a shrieking voice and ball of feathers plummeted from the sky.

"OI! I've been lookin' all over for ya! Is this some kinda sad joke?"

"Hey, what's that pink bird?" Alfred asked, pointing.

"It's night-purple, you little rascal!" Horatio cried, landing rather clumsily on the pavement. "And who're you?"

"This is Percy's younger brother, Alfred" I explained.

"MORE of that family? Oh flippin' heck, you're gonna make my life a misery, I assume", the Murkrow grumbled. "Is this all of you foreign folk now, then?"

"Nope," replied Percy, "There's one more."

"Goodness help whoever's had the misfortune to come across Jazz", Alfred joked.

"Who's Jazz again?" Horatio inquired.

"He's….."

"-An idiot."

"-A moron."

"-The lights are on, but nobody's home for Jazz."

"He doesn't…..know much about anything. And even less about pokemon".

I wasn't aware at this moment, but not too far away, in a nearby city, was a new trainer who was quickly gaining fame… as the worst trainer the city had ever known. A guy who hardly knew what a poke-ball looked like. A guy who called pokemon 'pokeymanz'. A guy who thought a 'gym league' was a particularly tough exercise regime. He wore his cap back-to-front too. That was our Jazz.

Footnotes

1 There were some more vulgar phrases, but I'm determined to keep the lewdness to a minimum. Believe me, Percy's words aren't always written as they actually were.

2 Albeit without an accompanying guidebook

3 I've seen them do it in movies, it's _really _cool, but you get a lot of dirt on your back afterwards, so don't try it at home unless you've got an excellent washing machine.

4 Yes, a little patronising, but he didn't know who I was, so I'll let the kid off the hook.

5 If you're even _thinking_ of mentioning ghost-types, let me assure you there weren't any in the center at the time. So your argument is void.

6 I wish she'd patted _my_ head.


End file.
